Property inspection system and method

ABSTRACT

A computer system and method for performing property inspections. Digital media is received in a computer vision image analysis system from one or more user devices via a network and a determination is made regarding an environment type associated with the received digital media. One or more objects are determined that are located in the determined environment and which are present in the received digital media. A determination is made regarding an absence of objects in the received digital media contingent upon the determined environment type based upon a set of rules.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a continuation claiming priority under 35 U.S.C. §120 to U.S. patent application Ser. No. 16/276,405, filed 14 Feb. 2019and published as U.S. Patent Publication No. US20190251645 on 15 Aug.2019, which claims priority to U.S. Patent Application Ser. No.62/631,266, filed 15 Feb. 2018, the contents of which are incorporatedherein by reference in its entirety as if presented in full.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The disclosed embodiments generally relate to artificial intelligence,and more particularly, to creating conversational flows with usersutilizing artificial intelligence analy sis of optical sensor data

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

When an insurance provider offers insurance for a home or business, theyare taking on the risk that any damage or liability associated with thatproperty can be offset by premium payments made by property owners. Inorder to create a good balance between offering competitive prices andmanaging risk, an insurance provider may wish to assess the relativerisk of each potential insurable property. Then, properties with lowerrisk may be offered lower premiums while higher-risk properties areoffered higher premiums to compensate for the higher risk. An inspectionof the property to be insured is essential to determine the risk.

Property inspection historically required a trained professional tophysically travel to a property to conduct a comprehensive propertyassessment while documenting important details in a report or a seriesof reports. This process has proven inefficient and requires training ofprofessional as well as travel time and expenses for transportation andinspection labor. In some scenarios, property inspections are notperformed at all (e.g., sight unseen), thus insurance providers andother parties expose themselves to an unnecessary level of risk.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The purpose and advantages of the below described illustratedembodiments will be set forth in and apparent from the description thatfollows. Additional advantages of the illustrated embodiments will berealized and attained by the devices, systems and methods particularlypointed out in the written description and claims hereof, as well asfrom the appended drawings.

An illustrative embodiment involves an insurance provider receivinginformation about an insured property preferably from a user of a smartdevice located in an area of the property, where the information isindicative of risk associated with the property. Based on the receivedinformation, the insurance provider determines a risk-adjusted insurancepremium for the property to adjust for the indicated risk. Inparticular, the illustrated embodiment provides an ArtificialIntelligence (AI) assistant for the underwriting process. In particular,the AI assistant guides users, preferably via a conversational flowprocess, through an underwriting and inspection process such that anyuser of a smart device having a camera can capture property informationto be utilized in an underwriting process without resort to costlytrained professionals. Insurance providers and other parties thatbenefit from such property data are thus enabled to gather importantproperty information faster and more affordably then previouslyaccomplished with trained professionals for determining property valueand risk exposure.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The accompanying appendices and/or drawings illustrate variousnon-limiting, example, inventive aspects in accordance with the presentdisclosure:

FIG. 1 illustrates an example system level diagram of a communicationnetwork for use with an illustrated embodiment;

FIG. 2 illustrates an example system level diagram of networkdevice/node which encompasses at least a portion of an illustratedembodiment and may be used in the communication network of FIG. 1 ;

FIG. 3 depicts an example system level diagram of an illustratedembodiment for performing property inspection;

FIG. 4 illustrates a flow diagram for operation of the illustratedembodiment of FIG. 3 ; and

FIG. 5A illustrates a first exemplary screen shot of a user device inaccordance with operation of the illustrated embodiment of FIG. 4 forperforming property inspection. FIG. 5B illustrates a second exemplaryscreen shot of a user device in accordance with operation of theillustrated embodiment of FIG. 4 for performing property inspection.FIG. 5C illustrates a third exemplary screen shot of a user device inaccordance with operation of the illustrated embodiment of FIG. 4 forperforming property inspection.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The illustrated embodiments are now described more fully with referenceto the accompanying drawings wherein like reference numerals identifysimilar structural/functional features. The illustrated embodiments arenot limited in any way to what is illustrated as the illustratedembodiments described below are merely exemplary, which can be embodiedin various forms, as appreciated by one skilled in the art. Therefore,it is to be understood that any structural and functional detailsdisclosed herein are not to be interpreted as limiting, but merely as abasis for the claims and as a representation for teaching one skilled inthe art to variously employ the discussed embodiments. Furthermore, theterms and phrases used herein are not intended to be limiting but ratherto provide an understandable description of the illustrated embodiments.

Unless defined otherwise, all technical and scientific terms used hereinhave the same meaning as commonly understood by one of ordinary skill inthe art to which this invention belongs. Although any methods andmaterials similar or equivalent to those described herein can also beused in the practice or testing of the illustrated embodiments,exemplary methods and materials are now described.

It must be noted that as used herein and in the appended claims, thesingular forms “a”, “an,” and “the” include plural referents unless thecontext clearly dictates otherwise. Thus, for example, reference to “astimulus” includes a plurality of such stimuli and reference to “thesignal” includes reference to one or more signals and equivalentsthereof known to those skilled in the art, and so forth.

It is to be appreciated the illustrated embodiments discussed below arepreferably a software algorithm, program or code residing on computeruseable medium having control logic for enabling execution on a machinehaving a computer processor. The machine typically includes memorystorage configured to provide output from execution of the computeralgorithm or program.

As used herein, the term “software” is meant to be synonymous with anycode or program that can be in a processor of a host computer,regardless of whether the implementation is in hardware, firmware or asa software computer product available on a disc, a memory storagedevice, or for download from a remote machine. The embodiments describedherein include such software to implement the equations, relationshipsand algorithms described above. One skilled in the art will appreciatefurther features and advantages of the illustrated embodiments based onthe above-described embodiments. Accordingly, the illustratedembodiments are not to be limited by what has been particularly shownand described, except as indicated by the appended claims.

Turning now descriptively to the drawings, in which similar referencecharacters denote similar elements throughout the several views, FIG. 1depicts an exemplary communications network 100 in which belowillustrated embodiments may be implemented.

It is to be understood a communication network 100 is a geographicallydistributed collection of nodes interconnected by communication linksand segments for transporting data between end nodes, such as personalcomputers, work stations, smart phone devices, tablets, televisions,sensors and or other devices such as automobiles, etc. Many types ofnetworks are available, with the types ranging from local area networks(LANs) to wide area networks (WANs). LANs typically connect the nodesover dedicated private communications links located in the same generalphysical location, such as a building or campus. WANs, on the otherhand, typically connect geographically dispersed nodes overlong-distance communications links, such as common carrier telephonelines, optical lightpaths, synchronous optical networks (SONET),synchronous digital hierarchy (SDH) links, or Powerline Communications(PLC), and others.

FIG. 1 is a schematic block diagram of an example communication network100 illustratively comprising nodes/devices 101-108 (e.g., sensors 102,client computing devices 103, smart phone devices 105, web servers 106,routers 107, switches 108, and the like) interconnected by variousmethods of communication. For instance, the links 109 may be wired linksor may comprise a wireless communication medium, where certain nodes arein communication with other nodes, e.g., based on distance, signalstrength, current operational status, location, etc. Moreover, each ofthe devices can communicate data packets (or frames) 142 with otherdevices using predefined network communication protocols as will beappreciated by those skilled in the art, such as various wired protocolsand wireless protocols etc., where appropriate. In this context, aprotocol consists of a set of rules defining how the nodes interact witheach other. Those skilled in the art will understand that any number ofnodes, devices, links, etc. may be used in the computer network, andthat the view shown herein is for simplicity. Also, while theembodiments are shown herein with reference to a general network cloud,the description herein is not so limited, and may be applied to networksthat are hardwired.

As will be appreciated by one skilled in the art, aspects of the presentinvention may be embodied as a system, method or computer programproduct. Accordingly, aspects of the present invention may take the formof an entirely hardware embodiment, an entirely software embodiment(including firmware, resident software, micro-code, etc.) or anembodiment combining software and hardware aspects that may allgenerally be referred to herein as a “circuit,” “module” or “system.”Furthermore, aspects of the present invention may take the form of acomputer program product embodied in one or more computer readablemedium(s) having computer readable program code embodied thereon.

Any combination of one or more computer readable medium(s) may beutilized. The computer readable medium may be a computer readable signalmedium or a computer readable storage medium. A computer readablestorage medium may be, for example, but not limited to, an electronic,magnetic, optical, electromagnetic, infrared, or semiconductor system,apparatus, or device, or any suitable combination of the foregoing. Morespecific examples (a non-exhaustive list) of the computer readablestorage medium would include the following: an electrical connectionhaving one or more wires, a portable computer diskette, a hard disk, arandom access memory (RAM), a read-only memory (ROM), an erasableprogrammable read-only memory (EPROM or Flash memory), an optical fiber,a portable compact disc read-only memory (CD-ROM), an optical storagedevice, a magnetic storage device, or any suitable combination of theforegoing. In the context of this document, a computer readable storagemedium may be any tangible medium that can contain, or store a programfor use by or in connection with an instruction execution system,apparatus, or device.

A computer readable signal medium may include a propagated data signalwith computer readable program code embodied therein, for example, inbaseband or as part of a carrier wave. Such a propagated signal may takeany of a variety of forms, including, but not limited to,electro-magnetic, optical, or any suitable combination thereof. Acomputer readable signal medium may be any computer readable medium thatis not a computer readable storage medium and that can communicate,propagate, or transport a program for use by or in connection with aninstruction execution system, apparatus, or device.

Program code embodied on a computer readable medium may be transmittedusing any appropriate medium, including but not limited to wireless,wireline, optical fiber cable, RF, etc., or any suitable combination ofthe foregoing.

Computer program code for carrying out operations for aspects of thepresent invention may be written in any combination of one or moreprogramming languages, including an object oriented programming languagesuch as Java, Smalltalk, C++ or the like and conventional proceduralprogramming languages, such as the “C” programming language or similarprogramming languages. The program code may execute entirely on theuser's computer, partly on the user's computer, as a stand-alonesoftware package, partly on the user's computer and partly on a remotecomputer or entirely on the remote computer or server. In the latterscenario, the remote computer may be connected to the user's computerthrough any type of network, including a local area network (LAN) or awide area network (WAN), or the connection may be made to an externalcomputer (for example, through the Internet using an Internet ServiceProvider).

Aspects of the present invention are described below with reference toflowchart illustrations and/or block diagrams of methods, apparatus(systems) and computer program products according to embodiments of theinvention. It will be understood that each block of the flowchartillustrations and/or block diagrams, and combinations of blocks in theflowchart illustrations and/or block diagrams, can be implemented bycomputer program instructions. These computer program instructions maybe provided to a processor of a general purpose computer, specialpurpose computer, or other programmable data processing apparatus toproduce a machine, such that the instructions, which execute via theprocessor of the computer or other programmable data processingapparatus, create means for implementing the functions/acts specified inthe flowchart and/or block diagram block or blocks.

These computer program instructions may also be stored in a computerreadable medium that can direct a computer, other programmable dataprocessing apparatus, or other devices to function in a particularmanner, such that the instructions stored in the computer readablemedium produce an article of manufacture including instructions whichimplement the function/act specified in the flowchart and/or blockdiagram block or blocks.

The computer program instructions may also be loaded onto a computer,other programmable data processing apparatus, or other devices to causea series of operational steps to be performed on the computer, otherprogrammable apparatus or other devices to produce a computerimplemented process such that the instructions which execute on thecomputer or other programmable apparatus provide processes forimplementing the functions/acts specified in the flowchart and/or blockdiagram block or blocks.

FIG. 2 is a schematic block diagram of an example network computingdevice 200 (e.g., client computing device 103, server 106, etc.) thatmay be used (or components thereof) with one or more embodimentsdescribed herein, e.g., as one of the nodes shown in the network 100. Asexplained above, in different embodiments these various devices areconfigured to communicate with each other in any suitable way, such as,for example, via communication network 100.

Device 200 is intended to represent any type of computer system capableof carrying out the teachings of various embodiments of the presentinvention. Device 200 is only one example of a suitable system and isnot intended to suggest any limitation as to the scope of use orfunctionality of embodiments of the invention described herein.Regardless, computing device 200 is capable of being implemented and/orperforming any of the functionality set forth herein.

Computing device 200 is operational with numerous other general purposeor special purpose computing system environments or configurations.Examples of well-known computing systems, environments, and/orconfigurations that may be suitable for use with computing device 200include, but are not limited to, personal computer systems, servercomputer systems, thin clients, thick clients, hand-held or laptopdevices, multiprocessor systems, microprocessor-based systems, set topboxes, programmable consumer electronics, network PCs, minicomputersystems, and distributed data processing environments that include anyof the above systems or devices, and the like.

Computing device 200 may be described in the general context of computersystem-executable instructions, such as program modules, being executedby a computer system. Generally, program modules may include routines,programs, objects, components, logic, data structures, and so on thatperform particular tasks or implement particular abstract data types.Computing device 200 may be practiced in distributed data processingenvironments where tasks are performed by remote processing devices thatare linked through a communications network. In a distributed dataprocessing environment, program modules may be located in both local andremote computer system storage media including memory storage devices.

Device 200 is shown in FIG. 2 in the form of a general-purpose computingdevice.

The components of device 200 may include, but are not limited to, one ormore processors or processing units 216, a system memory 228, and a bus218 that couples various system components including system memory 228to processor 216.

Bus 218 represents one or more of any of several types of busstructures, including a memory bus or memory controller, a peripheralbus, an accelerated graphics port, and a processor or local bus usingany of a variety of bus architectures. By way of example, and notlimitation, such architectures include Industry Standard Architecture(ISA) bus, Micro Channel Architecture (MCA) bus, Enhanced ISA (EISA)bus, Video Electronics Standards Association (VESA) local bus, andPeripheral Component Interconnect (PCI) bus. Computing device 200typically includes a variety of computer system readable media. Suchmedia may be any available media that is accessible by device 200, andit includes both volatile and non-volatile media, removable andnon-removable media.

System memory 228 can include computer system readable media in the formof volatile memory, such as random access memory (RAM) 230 and/or cachememory 232. Computing device 200 may further include otherremovable/non-removable, volatile/non-volatile computer system storagemedia. By way of example only, storage system 234 can be provided forreading from and writing to a non-removable, non-volatile magnetic media(not shown and typically called a “hard drive”). Although not shown, amagnetic disk drive for reading from and writing to a removable,non-volatile magnetic disk (e.g., a “floppy disk”), and an optical diskdrive for reading from or writing to a removable, non-volatile opticaldisk such as a CD-ROM, DVD-ROM or other optical media can be provided.In such instances, each can be connected to bus 218 by one or more datamedia interfaces. As will be further depicted and described below,memory 228 may include at least one program product having a set (e.g.,at least one) of program modules that are configured to carry out thefunctions of embodiments of the invention.

Program/utility 240, having a set (at least one) of program modules 215,such as underwriting module, may be stored in memory 228 by way ofexample, and not limitation, as well as an operating system, one or moreapplication programs, other program modules, and program data. Each ofthe operating system, one or more application programs, other programmodules, and program data or some combination thereof, may include animplementation of a networking environment. Program modules 215generally carry out the functions and/or methodologies of embodiments ofthe invention as described herein.

Device 200 may also communicate with one or more external devices 214such as a keyboard, a pointing device, a display 224, etc.; one or moredevices that enable a user to interact with computing device 200; and/orany devices (e.g., network card, modem, etc.) that enable computingdevice 200 to communicate with one or more other computing devices. Suchcommunication can occur via Input/Output (I/O) interfaces 222. Stillyet, device 200 can communicate with one or more networks such as alocal area network (LAN), a general wide area network (WAN), and/or apublic network (e.g., the Internet) via network adapter 220. Asdepicted, network adapter 220 communicates with the other components ofcomputing device 200 via bus 218. It should be understood that althoughnot shown, other hardware and/or software components could be used inconjunction with device 200. Examples, include, but are not limited to:microcode, device drivers, redundant processing units, external diskdrive arrays, RAID systems, tape drives, and data archival storagesystems, etc.

FIGS. 1 and 2 are intended to provide a brief, general description of anillustrative and/or suitable exemplary environment in which embodimentsof the below described present invention may be implemented. FIGS. 1 and2 are exemplary of a suitable environment and are not intended tosuggest any limitation as to the structure, scope of use, orfunctionality of an embodiment of the present invention. A particularenvironment should not be interpreted as having any dependency orrequirement relating to any one or combination of components illustratedin an exemplary operating environment. For example, in certaininstances, one or more elements of an environment may be deemed notnecessary and omitted. In other instances, one or more other elementsmay be deemed necessary and added.

With the exemplary communication network 100 (FIG. 1 ) and computingdevice 200 (FIG. 2 ) being generally shown and discussed above,description of certain illustrated embodiments of the present inventionwill now be provided. With reference now to FIGS. 3 and 4 , generallywhat is to be described is an Artificial Intelligence (AI) assistanceproperty inspection system 300 which provides a technical improvementfor existing underwriting and inspection systems by provision of an AIintelligent computer system specifically configured to guide end usersthrough inspections and an underwriting workflow specifically tailoredfor each user based upon the user's property. Components and processesto be described below include users downloading a mobile application ontheir smart device 101, 105 (e.g., a smart phone (iOS or Android),tablet or other portable computing devices preferably having a displayand camera device. The property inspection system 300 provides aconversational assistant and user experience which guides users 105through workflows (user conversational flows) preferably in astep-by-step format, and preferably via chat or voice, providingspecifically tailored instructions for capturing photographs, video inaddition to other requested information from a user. Captured photos andvideos are sent from a user device 105 to system 300 which sends them toa Computer Vision Application Program Interface (API) having a computervision image analysis system 310 for processing. As will be discussed,the Computer Vision API is configured to identify (extract data)(preferably using optical recognition techniques) and document objects,materials, structure, condition and the like associated with the photosand/or videos received from the user device 105. The data extracted bythe Computer Vision API 310 is then sent to a coupled ConversationalAI/Bot Service API having a conversational feature extractor system 320configured to format user conversational flows based on what isrecognized (and what is not recognized) by the Computer Vision API 310.Additionally, it is to be appreciated that data that is captured from auser device 105 by the computer vision server 106 throughout the user'sinteraction with server 106 is preferably stored in a records database330, preferably as a digital record/report.

What is to be discussed below is a technological improvement to existingcomputer systems, particularly (but not limited to) in an underwritingprocess, that analyzes and processes data extracted from a user device105 in the Computer Vision API 310 and Conversational AI/Bot ServiceSystem 320 so as to preferably determine and generate a report that isenriched with internal and external datasets in order to addpricing/value data and estimates of risk exposure.

It is to be appreciated that system 300 is described herein forillustrative use with insurance underwriting tasks, however system 300is not to be understood to be limited to use with insurance underwritingas it may be used in with any applicable applications/usageenvironments. For instance, one such other use includes the movingindustry wherein system 300 is configured to identify and catalogue aset of contents (e.g., a home, office, etc.), which then can be used toprovide a detailed report of contents to be moved as well as theircurrent value (as to be appreciated below).

With reference now to FIG. 3 , an overall simplified view of a preferredembodiment is illustrated which depicts a user device 105 coupled viaone or more networks 100 to a server system 300. The server system 300preferably includes: the Computer System API 310, Conversational AI/BotService System 320 and records database 300, all preferablyinterconnected for bi-lateral communication with one another. It is tobe appreciated that each aforesaid component is to be understood toinclude one or more components of computer system 200 depicted in FIG. 2.

As mentioned above, the user device 105 is to be understood to encompassa portable computer device preferably having network connectioncomponents (e.g., a cellular network transceiver), a display (e.g., atouchscreen display) and camera configured to capture both photographsand video. In accordance with the preferred illustrated embodiment ofsystem 300, the user device 105 is to be understood to be either asmartphone device or a tablet device.

The Computer System AI API 310 is preferably configured to interact witha user device 105 so as to receive captured media (e.g., photographsand/or video) from the user device 105 to perform analysis thereon. Inthe preferred illustrated embodiment the AI API 310 is configured toperform insurance inspection recognition tasks on received media (as tobe described herein) but it is not to be understood to be limited toonly performing insurance inspection recognition tasks. In the preferredembodiment, the AI API 310 is configured, preferably using AI, to detectan environment the received media is associated with (e.g., a kitchen,living room, bedroom, garage, outside structure, roof, etc.) and morespecifically objects located in that environment (e.g., stove,refrigerator, fireplace, lighting components, drapery, outdoor structurematerial, location of structure to nearby environmental elements (e.g.,standing or still water, shrubbery, landscape grade, recreationalobjects (e.g., swimming pools, trampolines and the like) etc.). The AIAPI 310 is further configured, preferably using AI, to determine theabsence of objects in a particular environment. For instance, if theenvironment is a kitchen, the AI API 310 may determine the absence of afire extinguisher or if the environment is a bedroom, the AI API 310 maydetermine the absence of fire/smoke/CO2 detectors, or if the environmentis a swimming pool the AI API 310 may determine the absence of a fenceand/or certain safety equipment (e.g., life vests).

The AI API 310 is further configured to interact with the ConversationalAI/Bot Service System 320 so as to essentially indicate what, and whathas not, been detected by the AI API 310 upon analysis of the mediareceived from user device 310. This information/data enables theConversational AI/Bot Service System 320, preferably using a set ofpreconfigured rules, to determine a conversational flow to be presentedto the user device 105 regarding requested follow-up information. Forinstance, if the detected environment of the received media is a kitchenand the AI API 310 is unable to detect from the received media themake/model of certain detected kitchen appliances (e.g., a stove and arefrigerator) and also the absence of certain objects (e.g., a fireextinguisher, smoke/heat/CO2 detectors), the AI API 310 then indicatesthe need for this additional information to the Conversational AI/BotService System 320. For illustrative purposes, another example of thecapabilities of the AI API 310 includes if the detected environment(e.g., a living room, bedroom, etc.) includes a fireplace, the absenceof protective fireplace doors/screen may be determined in addition todetection of objects possibly having flammable characteristics locatedin close proximity to the fireplace (e.g., furniture, drapery, etc.). Inthis scenario, the Conversational AI/Bot Service System 320 using itsset of rules would then format a conversational flow to the user device105 requesting what, if any, type of fire protection is provided on thefireplace and what type of material is used in the objects detected inclose proximity to the fireplace.

It is thus to be appreciated that the Conversational AI/Bot ServiceSystem 320 is configured to, preferably using a set of rules, to utilizethe aforesaid information provided by the AI API 310 to format aconversational flow for the user device 105. It is to be understood thisconversational flow may encompass chat formats (including conversationbubbles), SMS, MSM, email, messaging and audible and/or videocommunication types with the user device 105. Examples of which areprovided below. It is to be further understood, the AI API 310 is alsoconfigured to instruct the Conversational AI/Bot Service System 320 todetermine and change the user interaction experience/conversation on theuser device 105 so as to adapt based upon what is being seen by thecamera and data provided by the user device 105.

The records database 330 preferably receives and stores the informationdetermined from the AI API 310 and the Conversational AI/Bot ServiceSystem 320. With regards to the insurance industry, this storedinformation can be used for underwriting purposes (e.g., determine riskand premiums, premium renewals, claims determinations and adjustments,and other tasks associated with insurance underwriting. The recordsdatabase 330 may further be configured to generate to a report of thepremise to be insured).

With the certain components of an illustrated embodiment describedabove, with reference now to FIGS. 4 and 5 (with continued reference toFIG. 3 ), a method of operation will now be discussed. Starting at step410, a user of user device 410 installs an application (app) formattedfor their smart phone device 105 to enable the smart phone device 105 tointeract as described herein with system 300. When the user desires toperform a task with system 300, such as an insurance underwriting task,the user opens the app on their device 105 to initiate an underwritingtask (e.g., homeowners policy request), step 420. This in turn causesthe app to interact with system 300, via network 100, such that thesystem 300 and app provides the user with instructions to startinitiation of the requested task whereby the app preferably guides theuser through an inspection of property in a conversational manner, step430 (FIG. 5A). The app may cause the camera on user device 105 toactivate to enable video and/or photograph to be captured (FIG. 5B) ofthe requested environment (e.g., a kitchen) so as to be transmitted tosystem 300 preferably for analysis by AI API 310, step 440. It is to beunderstood that in accordance with a preferred illustrated embodiment,the capture and transmission of media may occur simultaneous (realtime).

Once the captured media is transmitted (step 440) by the user device 105and is received by the AI API 310 in system 300, it is preferably parsedby the AI API 310 using artificial intelligence techniques, step 450, todetermine objects (including object materials and condition), and theabsence of objects, in a subject environment (e.g., a kitchen), asdescribed above. As also described above, the AI API 310 provides thisinformation to the Conversational AI/Bot Service System 320, step 460.As also mentioned above, preferably using preconfigured rules, theConversational AI/Bot Service System 320 formats a conversation for theuser device 105 (FIG. 5C) requesting additional information from theuser device 105 regarding the initiated insurance underwriting task,step 470. The data responsive to the presented conversation fromConversational AI/Bot Service System 320 is then preferably sent backfrom user device 105 to AI API 310 for parsing and analysis, step 480.This aforesaid process is preferably continued until system 300determines no more relevant data is to be gained from the user device105.

It is to be appreciated the aforesaid process can be performed on areal-time basis, wherein a user of user device 105 can be capturingvideo that is being simultaneously analyzed by system 300. For instance,while a user is capturing video of a kitchen, conversation bubbles (the“conversation flow” sent by Conversational AI/Bot Service System 320)will appear on the user's device 105 requested certain information(e.g., make/model of an appliance, request capture of a fireextinguisher and/or other safety equipment).

Data that is captured during the assistive and adaptive workflow asdescribed above is preferably stored in database 330, step 490. It is tobe appreciated this stored data may be formatted in a comprehensivereport wherein the stored data is enriched with value estimates and riskprojections using information captured and identified by the AI API 310and user input, which may include third party data. An example of such areport includes: property address; date of report; property contents;conditions; material; and risk items. Using external and internal datasets, the report is enriched such that estimates of value and the amountof risk exposure are then added to the report.

It is to be appreciated the above system 300 in accordance with theillustrated embodiment provides technical and functional improvementsover existing computer systems, including, but not limited to providinga computer platform that enables property inspection to be performed bya user of a smart device who is not previously trained in propertyinspections, without sacrificing quality. It also provides a computingplatform that enables property inspections to be performed in a moretime and cost efficient manner as compared to employing trained propertyinspectors. Insurance providers and other parties can rely on actualproperty data rather than high-level analytics and assumptions. Itfurther provides a computing platform that enables insurance providersand other parties to accurately quote insurance coverage faster and in amore personalized/tailored way, ensuring the appropriate price and levelof coverage such that insurance carriers have an accurate understandingof exposure to risk and property value.

With certain illustrated embodiments described above, it is to beappreciated that various non-limiting embodiments described herein maybe used separately, combined or selectively combined for specificapplications. Further, some of the various features of the abovenon-limiting embodiments may be used without the corresponding use ofother described features. The foregoing description should therefore beconsidered as merely illustrative of the principles, teachings andexemplary embodiments of this invention, and not in limitation thereof.

It is to be understood that the above-described arrangements are onlyillustrative of the application of the principles of the illustratedembodiments. Numerous modifications and alternative arrangements may bedevised by those skilled in the art without departing from the scope ofthe illustrated embodiments, and the appended claims are intended tocover such modifications and arrangements.

What is claimed is:
 1. A computer system for performing propertyinspections, comprising: a property inspection server system coupled toa network, the system including: a computer vision image analysis systemthat receives digital media from one or more user devices via thenetwork; and a conversational feature extractor system configured to:determine an environment type associated with the digital media receivedby the computer vision image system, and detect one or more objectslocated in the determined environment present in the received digitalmedia based upon a set of rules.
 2. The computer system of claim 1,wherein the set of rules cause the conversational feature extractorsystem to analyze the one or more detected objects to determine whetherthe one or more detected objects match one or more objects predeterminedto be present in the determined environment.
 3. The computer system ofclaim 2, wherein the set of rules further cause the conversationalfeature extractor system to analyze the one or more detected objects todetermine when one or more predetermined specifications can bedetermined from analysis of the one or more detected objects.
 4. Thecomputer system of claim 3, wherein the conversational feature extractorsystem is further configured to compile a conversational flow to a userindicating the one or more detected objects and determined environmentthe one or more detected objects are associated with.
 5. The computersystem of claim 1, wherein the conversational feature extractor systemis further configured to determine an absence of one or more objects inthe received digital media contingent upon the determined environmentbased upon the set of rules.
 6. The computer system of claim 5, whereinthe absence of the one or more objects is determined when one or morepredetermined objects associated with the determined environment is notdetected.
 7. The computer system of claim 5, wherein the conversationalfeature extractor system is further configured to compile aconversational flow to a user indicating when one or more objects isdetermined absent from the determined environment.
 8. The computersystem of claim 7, wherein the determined absent object is a fireextinguisher.
 9. The computer system of claim 7, wherein theconversational flow includes user instructions for capturing mediaassociated with the one or more objects determined absent from thedetermined environment.
 10. The computer system of claim 1, wherein theconversational feature extractor system is further configured to includeconversational flow instructions which when received by a user devicecauses activation of one or more components on the user device.
 11. Thecomputer system of claim 10, wherein the user device is a smart phonedevice and the one or more components activated by the conversationalflow instructions is a camera component.
 12. The computer system ofclaim 11, wherein the conversational flow includes instructions for auser to follow regarding capture of certain media content in associationwith a certain type of a property inspection.
 13. The computer system ofclaim 12, wherein the conversational flow is formatted in one of thefollowing message types: SMS, email, audio messaging or video messaging.14. The computer system of claim 1, wherein the determined environmentis a kitchen.
 15. The computer system of claim 10, wherein a detectedobject is a kitchen appliance.
 16. A computer method for performingproperty inspections, comprising: receiving, in a computer vision imageanalysis system, digital media from one or more user devices via anetwork; determining an environment type associated with the digitalmedia received by the computer vision image system; detecting one ormore objects located in the determined environment present in thereceived digital media-contingent upon the determined environment andbased upon a set of rules, wherein the set of rules cause an analysis todetermine whether the one or more detected objects match one or moreobjects predetermined to be present in the determined environment. 17.The computer method of claim 16, wherein the set of rules causes furtheranalysis of the one or more detected objects to determine when one ormore predetermined specifications can be determined from analysis of theone or more detected objects.
 18. The computer method of claim 17,further comprising compiling a conversational flow to a user indicatingthe one or more detected objects and the associated determinedenvironment.
 19. The computer method of claim 16, further comprisingdetermining an absence of one or more objects in the received digitalmedia, wherein the absence of the one or more objects is determined whenone or more predetermined objects associated with the determinedenvironment is not detected.
 20. The computer method of claim 19,further comprising compiling a conversational flow to a user indicatingone or more of the absence of the one or more objects from thedetermined environment, user instructions for capturing media associatedwith the one or more objects determined absent from the determinedenvironment, and user instructions for capturing certain specificationsassociated with the detected one or more objects.